Doing a music festival internship: all work and all play

If you want to work in the creative industries it’s crucial to have relevant experience, as much of it as possible. There are plenty of job openings you never hear of because it is all about the connections – who you know, who the person you know knows and along those lines ad infinitum. Therefore, you need to intern. It’s definitely hard work because as an intern you are  at the bottom of the hierarchical structure of the company, which means (in most cases) you get a lot of work nobody wants to do – and you get a lot of it. In exchange you are presented with a valuable opportunity. Fair deal, right?

“Working 12 hours each day, and attending the festival after work till the early hours is challenging and a skill to have”

Music festivals are usually on everyone’s list of summer activities, but my idea was to work at one. Event management and organisation was a career path I was considering because I caught myself saying ‘I want to work in music’ and not actually exploring the possibilities of that statement. Outlook and Dimensions Festival in Croatia, very familiar to electronica and sound system culture fans, run a placement to be a part of the ‘Management Support Team’ which is, in lay terms, an internship position open to everyone who has interest in live events and would like to know more about producing them. Without any experience in the field, after an interview with only the Event Manager, I was notified that out of 250 applicants I was chosen among the 20 who will get the chance to work in one of the six departments at both festivals.

“The backdrop to the madness was the late Croatian summer; the sun, the smell of the sea and the music playing in the distance made the job that much easier.”

NVS Music Group, a company from London, partnered with a Croatian festival company and together they run the event. The scheme is organised in the way that return flights are provided along with accommodation and food, however, the internship itself is unpaid. I won’t polemicise on the issue of working for free because it’s a complex one, but I can say from experience that working 12 hours each day, and attending the festival after work till the early hours is challenging and a skill to have. Networking outside of work hours, at the festival, was arguably even more important than during the day when everyone was too busy and stressed to care about other’s career aspirations. Not to say the atmosphere wasn’t welcoming, it was an absolute pleasure to work with a young, motivated team in such a fast paced and exciting environment. “It’s what you do” is what everyone said after hearing complaints of being too tired to go out yet again after a long day of work, but it’s the truth, it’s three weeks where you physically and mentally give your all, and after which you can rest for as long as you need.

Image: Matea Fadiga

I worked in the Staff Accreditation and Logistics department of the festival, it’s notable to say preferences can be made when applying but in general the team assigns the roles and departments in which each ‘MST’ (what we were called) would be working. My job was to make sure the staff arrangements, from arrival to departure, are sorted and that everything runs smoothly on the site. Of course, I shared my responsibilities as I worked in a team with three other people. Long days staring at Excel tables, liaising between different departments and talking on the phone – making sure no one is lacking anything needed for their part of the job was my day to day. Luckily, the backdrop to the madness was the late Croatian summer; the sun, the smell of the sea and the music playing in the distance made the job that much easier.

Ultimately, although it was nothing like I imagined it will be, I’m glad I decided to use my summer for thinking about my career. It gave me an insight into how a respectable, international festival is organised and I met the people who make it happen. Apart from that I also met young music enthusiasts, photographers, promoters and all kinds of creatives. Those contacts will, I hope, be useful to me at some point in the future. The opportunity to see how things work on a bigger scale is largely underestimated. Leaving an impression on the right person can make all the difference, make your name the one in “I know somebody!” when a job opening appears.